Rising Shadows
by Cayde-7
Summary: A different twist on the Aincrad arc from SAO. Some characters will die early, and some will be more present. Join Kirito on his adventure to become the strongest player in Aincrad, not to only survive, but to protect a person who he holds dear. Will things be taking a turn for the worse ? Or for the Better ? Read to find out!
1. World of Death

**Disclaimer: I do not own Sword Art Online or any characters. They are owned by A-1 Pictures, Aniplex USA, and Reki Kawahara. **

**A/N: **

**Hello readers,**

**I am writing my first story ever on this cite after years of only reading. I usually wanted to write something up, but I guess I never got around to it till now. Any criticism would be helpful and if you see an error, just tell me. **

**When it comes to the story, I would like it if you guys kind of built it with me. As in if you have a good idea that goes with the story premise than buy all means please do tell. I want to make some great stories and I know the readers can help a lot. I don't know how often I will post, but I will set my sights on a longer story so maybe once a week, depending on how the week goes. It will be rated M for language, extreme violence, and potential lemons. Kirito will probably more OC than I intend but we'll see what happens after the first chapter is up for a bit.**

**The romance aspect of my story will be a bit slower than some others out there but I won't make it to slow. I don't enjoy stories that immediately have the characters in love, without any build up. I am going to definitely have some plot twists and stuff, but those are for later. I will hint towards things but you'll have to guess for yourself until they are confirmed or not.**

**Anyway, please enjoy my first story, Rising Shadows.**

**-Cayde-7**

Normal Text

_Thoughts_

"Speaking"

'In game text'

**Author/Narrator text**

Chapter 1: World of Death

It was comforting, the darkness that washed over him before the colors. It was relaxing to him, though he didn't know why. Kazuto felt himself lose touch with every sensation and feeling in that split second, as if he just went numb to everything around him.

Then there was light. It had come from the words he had commanded at the system. "Link Start!" Colors from across the rainbow flew at him suddenly, but he was prepared. He had seen this before and readied himself accordingly, as the words "Welcome to Sword Art Online!" passed him. That was when the sensations came back, and slammed into him like a truck. He felt his body being generated as blue particles flew all around him. His body now fully formed, he felt excitement rushing out of his every vein.

He looked up, eyes blinking as a bright light pierced his eyes. Everything came into to focus, the buildings, the people, his hands, and his feet. He grinned wide; he had missed this place. Ever since the end of the beta he had longed to return to this beautiful fantasy world. He clenched his fist tight in a declaration and yelled out across the Town of Beginnings.

"Hello world, I'm back!"

Kirito immediately knew what he was going to do. He opened up his friend's tab and put in the name 'Argo' in the search bar. Once the name popped up, he pressed the add as friend button and smirked happily. Argo was someone he had come to hang out with a lot during the beta, as he and a select few were chosen to demo the game before its release. She was an info broker during the beta and he had no doubt that she would do the same thing here. He laughed inwardly as he thought about the whiskered girl, even when it came to her friends everything had a price.

He decided that while he would wait for her to accept and message him, he would try and get a head start on all the other players that had just logged in. First things first he would want to secure a farming spot before all the other new players came along and crowded the fields for exp. He didn't need a sword or any armor as the starting gear would suffice, but also because he had a starting amount of 100 measly cor that would get him nowhere. While he was running through the city towards the exit, he heard someone yell "Hey you!" in his direction. Curiously he turned his head to see who the player had been yelling at. He realized that that person was in fact him getting yelled at. So much for avoiding strangers at all.

"Yes?" he asked suspiciously with his eyes widened and eyebrows raised. The man had dark red hair that went past his shoulders by a tad, and a bandana that was wrapped around his forehead. Other than that, he looked the same as everyone else with his starting armor and weapon.

"I saw you running around, and it looks like you know your way around this place." the man said exhaustedly as he had just ran to catch up with Kirito. "You're a beta tester, right?"

Klein was the name of the man he had just met. He had asked Kirito if he could show him the ropes, as he was new to the game, and to VRMMO's in general.

"Ahhhhh!" Klein yelped as he was hit by a boar square in the balls. He rolled around and groaned in pain. Kirito watched him curiously, "You do know you can't feel any actual pain, right?" Klein's eyes popped open in surprise "Oh yea..." He proceeded to sit up. "By the way I've been meaning to ask, what exactly happens when you die in this game?" he asked unknowingly.

"Well it's just as any other game like this, you'd just respawn back at the Town of Beginnings yet lose any items, weapons, or armor you had on you at the time," he explained. "So, I guess it's worse to die later in the game than early" Klein proposed.

"Definitely, unless you of course store them in a chest or storage appliance somewhere in the game."

"Well then I got nothing to lose against this stupid boar!" Klein declared. Kirito chuckled "Well at least friend me before you do that, I wouldn't want it to be a pain to come find me again"

"Alright, will do." Klein than sent a quick friend request and Kirito gladly accepted. "I would say go ahead and all, but that boars mine!" Kirito said jokingly as he powered up a sword skill and flew at the boar. "Not if I can help it!" Klein yelled from behind while charging his own skill. He was too late though as Kirito was already collecting his reward. "Come on! How fast are you?!" He sighed, "I never even got a chance to kill a mob yet" he said disappointingly. "Sorry," Kirito teased, "but I have more experience with the mechanics"

Klein's eyesight than landed behind Kirito. "What the hell is that fucked up looking thing?" he asked with one eyebrow raised. Kirito turned around and recognized the plant monster he had seen during the beta. "Oh, that I believe is a Little Nepenthes" Kirito replied. "They aren't little at all so the name can be deceiving." It was standing at the edge of the forest they were near with a few others like it, mindlessly walking around. "Hmmm, I bet I could beat it!" "Watch, I'll kill that thing before you can even touch it" Klein said challengingly. He then started running at the nearest one, sword aimed for the fruit like thing with a sword skill charging up.

"Klein, wait!" Kirito called out desperately. "Those are level three's, which is a big difference this early in!" It was too late though as Klein already had hit the fruit. At that moment, a dozen or so more spawned in all around Klein. That was when he realized he messed up bad for charging in like that. Just a few hits from the vines and he was already in the red zone. "I'm coming Klein, hold on!" _That idiot! I can't help unless I risk myself having to restart. _

"Stay back Kirito!" "I'll just meet you back here after I respawn" he called back out. Klein knew he wasn't going to make it out and smiled with a thumbs up. Kirito watched helplessly as Klein busted into a million tiny blue pieces after the Little Nepenthes used acid to finish the job. Kirito sighed "Ughh, what a fool." "Now I've got to wait here for him to come back all the way from the start."

Kirito decided he would go and sit on a near hill that stood out on the flat plain. While he waited for Klein to come back, his thoughts drifted back to his only other friend.

_I wonder when Argo will accept my friend request, I hope she does soon. _Not even a second later he heard a ping that notified him of an accepted friend request. _Well speak of the devil._ He opened up his menu and checked the message that was sent to him from Argo. 'Hey Kii-bou! Sorry for not responding sooner, but ya want to meet me at the town of Beginnings now?' Kirito smiled, happy he would see his friend again and replied to her. 'Definitely, but I also don't want to abandon a friend I just made so I'll meet you there in a bit and introduce you to him.'

He confirmed send and closed out of his menu. _Jeez, I wonder what could be taking Klein so long. _As time passed Kirito started to get more worried. _I hope he didn't get lost or something. What if he just ditched me? I wouldn't be surprised if he had other friends in this game that he would rather hang out with. _Kirito scolded himself for such a rude thought. _No, Klein didn't seem like the kind of guy to do that kind of thing, what am I thinking. _

It was around 5:25 when Kirito decided he should message Klein about his whereabouts. As he scrolled to his friends list, he found Klein's name right under Argos as it wasn't hard to find people when he only had two friends at the moment. He clicked on Klein's name and right before he was about to send a message, he noticed something odd. Instead of the usual 'Alive' status indicator next to a friend's name, it said 'Dead' as if he hadn't been revived yet. Kirito frowned at this, _why hasn't he spawned back in yet? _This was something that had never happened in the beta. Yet before he could try and think of a reason as to why this would happen, he heard a sudden ringing that was coming all the way from the starting town. "What the he-" was all Kirito got out before he was spawned back at the Town of Beginnings.

Dread filled his whole body as it dawned on him what Kayaba Akihiko had just announced to all of the SAO player base. His eyes covered by his bangs he clenched his fists as he felt pain coming from his right hand. _This is real... _He was at a loss for words. _I'm in a death game, and there is no way out. _He sucked in a sharp unsteady breath and tried breathing out slowly to try and calm himself when it hit him. He coughed and choked as his thoughts shattered his mind. His eyes snapped open, _K-Klein! _His thoughts shifted to the memories of seeing Klein shatter into pieces. _H-He can't be dead, no... _His face contorted as tears started to fall around him. _This is all my fault. If I hadn't been so uncaring if Klein rushed in or if I had just been faster to help him... _He fell to his knees in despair at the thought of someone dying because of him.

A second later he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Kirito" "Kirito please get up." The voice begged. He looked up to see who the comforting hand had come from. Argo stood above him with a worried look on her face. Her eyes widened a bit at seeing the state he was in. She pulled him up with one arm and pulled him into a hug. She didn't know what else to do then try and comfort the boy.

It had not been hard to recognize him as after the beta had ended, they had met up in the real world and hung out. They became best friends, yet she felt something was lacking. During those times her thoughts on their relationship were of happiness but of a little longing. She just didn't understand why. Argo clung to the boy in front of her as she to feared the reality they had just been dragged into. Kirito than recovered his bearings and realized that he would need a head start to help him survive this world. "Thanks Argo, but we should leave to go to Horunka village. If we want to survive were going to need to take advantage of all of our knowledge from the beta." Argo looked at him questioningly, "We?" Kirito's faced became determined as he held her shoulders, "yes, we. I'm not leaving here without you." She felt a warm feeling bubble up in her stomach. _Where the hell did this feeling come from? Why do I feel like this? _Despite all the craziness going on at the moment, and her own internal struggles she was currently facing, she was glad that Kirito showed he cared. Yet she also couldn't let go of the fact of how heartbroken he looked just a moment ago. She knew he had a friend and had a bad feeling as where that friend was. "Kirito, that friend you mentioned. Are they here...?" His face grimaced immediately, as if he was in pain when thinking about it.

Kirito opened his mouth but nothing came out at first. He didn't want to except the reality of what had happened right in front of his eyes. "Klein had died out in the plains... I thought he would respawn and just come right back, b-but he-" Argo didn't let him finish, "it's okay Kirito, it wasn't your fault. No one knew that dying here meant permanent death." she consoled him.

As she went to comfort him again, she couldn't help but repeat her own words through her head. _It's not your fault, no one knew. I didn't know either... _ He fell back into her embrace; this was the most open he had ever been with someone emotionally. After a few moments, he let go of her and grabbed her hand. "Let's head for the next town over, we can get an early start on some better quests and items we can use in the future." Argo nodded in agreement her brown eyes turning into a determined stare. Kirito took a quick minute to actually take in her appearance. Her brown eyes and golden-brown hair matched well. She had a hood on just like in the beta, but something was missing. It was then that he noticed her whiskers were not there. Argo noticed him staring but dismissed it and started forward.

"Let's go" she stated, not giving him a chance to reply. He then caught up with her and they started running together, away from all the pandemonium that was ensuing in the beginning town. As they ran together all the memories of the last few hours flashed through their minds, each with their own thoughts to ponder on. Yet all were disheartening.

A little ways away from the town they saw a wolf coming into view on the path ahead. Kirito didn't hesitate as he ran ahead and started charging up a sword skill. He zoomed past the wolf in an instant and had one-shot it. He stopped for a moment as he waited for Argo to catch up. She stopped in front of him taking a few moments to catch her own breath. "I see you still have your experience" Argo said with a small smile. He took that moment to again appreciate her pretty characteristics, wondering why he had the feeling to just stare at her. _If I keep staring, she's going to think I'm a pervert or something. I better stop, _he berated himself inwardly. Kirito than noticed something odd, he couldn't see Argo's cursor. Cursors were what usually differentiated criminals from other players. "Argo, what happened to your cursor?" he asked. "Oh, nothing. It's just because I have the hiding ability active. It can hide a players cursor." "I see, I completely forgot that the hiding ability could do that." Argo dismissed any more questions he might have asked by grabbing his hand starting to run again.

Argo spoke again once they were at a steady pace. "Once we get to the second town we need to come up with a plan where I can expand my info network, gather more info, and you to become a frontline player. I will definitely try to become a front liner as well but it's not what I want to focus on right now."

"Alright, I'm with you, no matter what I'll have your back," Kirito replied.

_I couldn't bare losing another friend, I'll make sure we make it out alive. Nothing will get in my way of that, _Kirito thought. They ran together hand in hand uncertain of what the future may have in store.

The nightmare that Sword Art Online had just become was beginning.

**A/N: **

**So, what did you guys think? Like or hate it? You guys tell me.**

**Please leave a review so I can get more feedback on my writing and anything I can fix or do better in general. Also, if you have any ideas of your own for this story don't hesitate to reach out to and tell me. **

**A/U: I just republished it with extra bits here and there, about a 300 or so word increase. I also fixed any errors I saw while reading through it. **

**Also, when it comes to updating, I decided I would try to make a new chapter every 3 days at the least. Thanks to anyone who supports me and my first story!**

**Will be continued...**

**..**

**.**

**In the next chapter!**


	2. A Deadly Sunrise

**Disclaimer: I do not own Sword Art Online or any characters. They are owned by A-1 Pictures, Aniplex USA, and Reki Kawahara. **

**A/N:**

**Hey guys! I'm back with my second chapter of my first fanfiction! **

**I wanted to let you guys know of a few things. Firstly, I wanted to make a note that I am going to try to make every chapter of mine around 5,000 or more words. With the exception of my first one of course. **

**For the timeline of this story I don't want to do many big-time skips if any at all, so I will try to avoid doing that.**

**If you guys have any questions just ask through a review or pm even. **

**Shout out to LeviTamm! for inspiring me with a few of his ideas! He has a really good story you guys should check out. It's called Orange. **

**-Cayde-7**

Normal Text

_Thoughts_

"Speaking"

'In game text'

**Author/Narrator text**

Chapter 2: A Deadly Sunrise

_I'm lucky, _Argo thought to herself as they arrived to Horunka. _If the timer had run out the guards would have spawned back there, and I would've been dead. _Argo had been thinking back to when she and Kirito had left the starting town.

**Flashback:**

Argo had just been teleported to the Town of beginnings. _Crap! This is bad. _Due to an earlier incident she expected to have the guard indicator pop up and warn her of being in the city.

When nothing happened, she sighed. She took a look around confused as to why she was here and who had teleported her. Then she noticed tons of other players spawning in around her, just as confused as she was.

That's when a massive version of a GM had formed in the air from a red ceiling that read 'Warning' all over the place.

Her eyes stared at the ground blankly. _Oh... So, I'm a murderer, I guess. _She didn't know what to think of, after the creator of SAO had just announced that they were all a part of a death game now. She drew in an unsteady breath and let out a slow sorrowful sigh. With tears threatening to spill from her eyes, all of a sudden, the text window from earlier appeared in front of her. She only had about 10 or so minutes before the city guards would come and try to kill her for being within the city boundaries. She knew she had to leave right away. _Wait, I can't leave Kazuto! I need to find him before I leave. _Then a dangerous thought crept into the back of her mind_. What if because of what I did he... _For a split second she doubted he would want anything to do with her if she told him what happened earlier.

_No! I can't think like that right now. Ill cross that bridge when I get there, sh_e thought determinedly. _Kazuto is probably thinking the same thing I am, and that's to make it out no matter what. _She wiped away the wetness from her eyes and proceeded to scan the crowd as quickly as possible. It was so crowded that it was hard to search among the mosh pit of people who all were wearing the same gear. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a player on his knees as if the weight of the world had just crashed on top of him. She didn't have to spare another second as she recognized his black hair and his more petite stature right off the bat.

She pushed through the crowd desperately, worried if he was okay. As she reached him, she tentatively put a hand on his shoulder and called out to him.

"Kirito" "Kirito please get up."

**Flashback End:**

"Alright lets head for an inn to begin with," Kirito stated as they walked into the village._ I'm lucky this place doesn't have any guards Argo thought to herself silently. _Smaller villages don't usually have guards. "Um, I don't think that will be the best idea right now." Argo replied uncertainly. She had a divided look on her face, and Kirito didn't understand why.

"Where do you suggest we go than?" He asked. Argo couldn't go into any inns or buy anything at stores in her current state. She was going to have to resort to some sort of excuse. _I want to tell him what happened, but I don't know how he'll respond. Besides its better if I just leave my problems out of his life. He doesn't need any more burdens, he already has enough to carry himself. _"Let's just set up a tent for the night, somewhere along the edge of town. That way we can get an early advantage when it comes to certain mob spawn distances, and quests. Also, we won't have to pay for two rooms. We need to conserve every drop of cor we can get," Argo explained. Kirito thought it over for a second, and while he did like the security of a room, he saw the logic behind it. Although he failed to see what Argo was truly hiding.

"Alright, sounds like a plan. I want to level up as fast as possible, and that will require the help of the Anneal Blade. I'm going to get to level 3 first, then I can take on the secret medicine of the forest quest." Argo nodded in agreement, and thought of how she needed to get started herself. "Well since I'm a beta player I could sell any beta info to non-beta players, but that would just be wrong. If this wasn't a life or death situation, I would have done that without hesitation, but things have changed. Since the new players won't have any beta info, I think a good course of action would be to make a guide book on everything we know from the beta." Argo new this would not only make her look good to non-beta players, but it would spread her name across the entire player base quickly. She was happy with her idea and decided she would start by giving one guidebook to a merchant, and have them replicate more till every merchant could distribute them freely. While they walked towards the edge of town, they headed for a stream that led to a pond nearby.

It was a pretty little area about two acres big, and was still within the village safety zone. They decided to set up right next to the pond, near a large tree. "I can use my first skill slot as a temporary way to build a tent and some sleeping gear," Kirito said as he opened his menu and chose the skill 'Crafting' so he could quick create a tent. All he needed was about 5 wolf pelts, and 10 boar tusks to have it crafted for him. Luckily, he already had enough boar tusks from his time earlier in the day. It was wolf pelts that he was lacking sadly. "Hey Argo, do you have any wolf pelts by any chance?" he asked. "Yup I have 6 of them. I'll just quick drop half of them and relinquish ownership of the pelts." She hoped he didn't ask why she couldn't just do a formal trade, as they were much quicker, but she didn't want him seeing her cursor because of it. Yet without fail Kirito frowned and looked at Argo with a confused face. "Why not just do a normal trade?"

Argo looked down, avoiding Kirito's gaze. _Shit! I knew he was too smart to try and trick him like that. _"Oh, I guess I just forgot about it for a moment. Here just take them anyway," She said dismissively. He looked at her and had an odd feeling she was keeping something important from him. _It's not like her to keep secrets, unless its info of course. This seems different though. She sounds almost guilty about something. _Kirito sighed, "I doubt you of all people could forget that," he stated blatantly. "Is something wrong Argo?" his tone switching to one of concern.

"Nope, nothing's wrong Kii-bou! I guess I'm still reeling from what happened earlier. I'll be better with a good night's rest," She replied with a painfully cheerful voice that was obviously fake. Kirito felt the need to reassure her. "Okay, but if anything is troubling you, just come to me. I wouldn't be a very good friend if I couldn't give back what others give me." Argo still looking down, managed a small smile and simply whispered back "I know" so quietly, Kirito barley heard it.

Once the tent was almost finished, fire made, and all the blankets crafted as well, a realization dawned on him. There was only one tent, and it wasn't very big.

"Soooo, uhm..." Kirito started as he nervously looked at Argo. "Yes Kii-bou?" she asked innocently as a smirk grew on her face. She knew what he was referring to and wanted to take this chance to tease Kirito for her own pleasure. "Well you see... I think we should have someone keep watch for any suspicious players. We can take turns sleeping; I will take first watch if that's okay..." He volunteered. Argo put on a sarcastic frown, "Well it's the first night Kirito, and I don't think well be in any danger tonight. We both need a rest for our journey tomorrow and I wouldn't want you getting cold all alone out here." Argo said slyly

Kirito laughed nervously. "Hehe... I guess your right" he said back almost fearfully while turning his attention to the tent. Argo then proceeded to sneak over to him while he continued his work, and whisper in his ear. "You'll keep me warm, right Kii-bou?"

A shiver ran down his spine in response to her proximity, her breath was tickling his ear. He felt Argo slowly wrap her arms around his chest, while he had his own arms raised trying to finish the ceiling of the tent. His heart pounded nervously, it vibrated through his whole body. _Dammit Argo! I never expected she could still tease me in such a situation. _She slowly added to Kirito's unease by placing her chest up against his back. Even with his mind fighting with all his willpower to try and move, he was frozen in place.

Argo knew she had full control and smirked at the thought. _Aww, is poor little Kirito at a loss of words from being flirted with? _She teased inwardly. This wasn't uncommon for her to torture him like this. She had done this a multitude of times in different ways IRL. This time it was a little different though. Instead of it being just a friendly joke, or tease she pulled on him for fun, she herself felt a little nervous as well. Which never happened.

It was then Kirito decided he would do something about her little games. He would fight fire with fire. Argo was still distracted by her thoughts, so she didn't notice Kirito moving until he had gotten out of her luscious grasp. He quickly used his newfound freedom to turn around and look at her with the same smirk she had just a moment ago. Before she could react, he moved in close and gently grabbed her chin, leaning in so close she could feel his breath on her lips. Simultaneously he had used his other hand to cup the back of her head, effectively stopping her from any escape. Her breathing hitched; she hadn't been prepared for a counter attack what so ever. It's like time stopped, Argo was being sucked into the two stunning black holes that were gently piercing her soul.

That's when Kirito moved his lips to one of her ears, and as smoothly as he could, whispered back. "I'll keep you warm as long as you want, my princess."

Argo turned beat red and could barely muster a reply. "K-Kirito wh-what are you doi-" Before she could finish Kirito fell on his back and exploded into laughter. "Your face is priceless Argo!" Argo's face washed over with realization and embarrassment. He had utterly destroyed her at her own game.

Argo clenched her fists in frustration at the thought of Kirito turning the tables so suddenly. She couldn't help but lower her head and sigh in defeat. Outwardly she looked to have accepted the loss, but her thoughts raged on. _That bastard! I'm so going to get him back for that one!_

Argo calmed down a second later and looked over to the giggling boy whose laughing seemed endless. He was clutching his sides as he rolled back and forth, tears seemingly about to burst from how hard he was laughing. He opened his mouth to speak but was struggling to suppress his giggles. "Ar-Argo" he pushed out. "I'm sorry but it was only fair; You looked like a tomato." That was all he could get out before he started cracking a few more laughs out.

While Kirito struggled to calm down, Argo decided it wasn't over just yet. She walked over to him, and stood over him menacingly. Even with the look of revenge staring down at him, he simply smiled wide. Argo put her hand out for him to grab, which he did without thinking. That was a mistake. Using the momentum of pulling him up, she pulled him right into a tight hug. Kirito had no time to react though as she then moved her lips to his cheek and planted a gentle kiss while preparing for what she would do next. He blushed in surprise, but it didn't last long.

It happened in a flash. The cold that hit him was unwelcomely caressing his body. It seeped into his clothes, and over his head as he went under.

Argo had pushed him into the pond...

The first floor of Aincrad was a beautiful place with spring like weather. That didn't mean the nights wouldn't get chilly though. Argo thought about this while she watched her friend flail around in the cold water. It was night time by then as well, so the temperature was even lower than normal. "A-Argo! What the hell!" He luckily was in the shallower end, allowing for him to regain his footing as fast as possible. Argo watched with a bright smile as he pulled himself out of the pond, completely drenched.

He was already shivering due to the light breeze hitting whatever bare skin it could. "You deserved that," Argo stated contently.

"Like hell I did" he complained sarcastically. Argo had just set up everything right. "Well you can't sleep in that, got anything else?" she asked mischievously. "Of course not! It's the first night, you expect me to..." Argo's smile only grew. _Wait...! She wanted this. I can't wear this because I'll get sick in this weather. Also, If I want to be warm, I'm going to have to sleep in the tent... With Argo... _He was in a bad situation.

Argo started heading to the tent, grabbing a blanket to sleep with. "Well I don't know about you, but I'm going to get some sleep now." She had basically left him with the options of staying outside in the cold, sleeping in his soaked clothes, or hanging his clothes up and sleeping in nothing but a blanket. He hated all his options. Argo was happily getting in her makeshift bed, proud of the mind tricks she just placed on Kirito.

Kirito sighed as he peaked over at the tent making sure no one was looking. He grabbed one of the three remaining blankets and hung it up on the tree as a cover. He quickly took his clothes off and hung them as well. He felt overly exposed in this state, so he immediately grabbed the blanket down and wrapped it around himself. He walked over to the tent and peeked his head in. Argo looked to have already passed out from the exhaustion of such a long day.

He quietly stepped in the small tent and laid down next to her, still shivering from the cold. He had grabbed another blanket on his way in to add to his cover. The light from the fire was starting to dim a little while he positioned himself as far as possible from the girl as he could. Which wasn't very far to his displeasure. Once he was as comfortable as possible his thoughts returned to the events of the day. He silently grit his teeth just thinking about what Kayaba had done to them. Normally his head would be too preoccupied with his train of thoughts to fall asleep, but the exhaustion he felt physically and emotionally overwhelmed him. He closed his eyes and allowed it all to fade away.

Kirito woke to the sound of chirping birds. His eyes squinting due to the few rays of light piercing through a small opening in the tent. He slowly laid upward looking to the other side of the tent. Argo was still asleep her chest rising and falling consistently. He, despite all the troubles that were clouding his mind, had to admit he had fun last night. He was glad Argo was with him.

She had comforted him when he broke down yesterday, and she always would no matter what. When the beta was about to end, she had suggested they play some other games together as she had enjoyed her time with him in the beta. He was skeptical at first, but knowing he didn't get out all that often, and had little to no friends, he decided he should at least try and make one new friend.

Over the course of the wait for the official release of SAO, they would play a lot of other online games together. He loved spending time with her online, as it was always a blast.

Recently, about a month ago he had met her in person for the first time.

**Flashback:**

_She's beautiful... _Was all he could think when seeing her actual face and not some pixels or a game icon. "Is that you Kirito?" she asked. It was awkwardly silent for a moment before he broke out of his daze, and replied smiling. "It sure is Argo"

She broke any tension by offering her hand to shake. "You're a lot cuter than I thought you'd be," she said with a smirk. He wasn't surprised by her comment though, as she had teased him in game a lot an and he had kind of grown accustomed to it. He took her hand gently and shook it. "Teasing me already, jeez. Give me a break all ready." he whined. "Sorry Kii-bou! I guess I can't help myself. Your just my favorite to pick on." she replied while tilting her head to the side cutely.

They started walking to the coffee shop that was located just around the street corner. "By the way, my real name is Kazuto, Kazuto Kirigaya. Although, I doubt you'll stop using Kii-bou anytime soon," he stated. "Got that right Kii-bou!" she confirmed as she slapped him playfully on the back. "Well my name is Tomo, Tomo Hosaka." Kirito smirked "It's nice to finally meet you... Rat" She looked at him in fake anger, "Hey! Don't give away my alias! Besides, Rat isn't much of a nickname. Come up with something better." Kirito thought for a minute, unsure of what to call his best friend. "I would suggest Tomo-chan but I'm guessing you want something more unique. How about a short version of that, To-chan?"

She leaned on his shoulder, and eyed him. "Sounds good to me" She said with a pause in between each word. "He lightly blushed cause of how close she was. "Alright, To-chan it is..."

**Flashback End:**

The memory faded from Kirito's mind as he remembered his current clothing situation. _Shit! I can't believe I forgot that I'm completely unclothed under these blankets! If Argo hadn't pushed me into that damn pond... _He hurriedly peeked outside and looked to see if his clothes were dry. Once he confirmed that they were no longer wet, all he had to do was just reequip them as they never had left his possession, just his physical body. Once he had his gear back on, he went over to the fire that was now just orange coals. He took some water from the pond and dumped it on the fire. He didn't think they would be coming back, as after today they should be able to afford an inn. With two rooms at that...

After he picked up anything they had left out over the previous night, he took a moment to watch the sun rise. _I can't believe something so peaceful looking was created to trap people in a death game. _He thought back to Klein's smile and his thumbs up, as if he was saying everything would be fine, but now look where they were. It almost seemed all hope was lost to him. He couldn't really even say that he wanted to return to the real world. His family and him had a distant relationship. It was him who caused that, after learning that they weren't in fact, his mom, or his sister. They were his aunt and his cousin. He had felt betrayed that he was withheld from such information. Recently though he was thinking about trying to rekindle those relationships, yet now that he was here, it didn't even matter at the moment.

The only person he wanted to spend more time with in the real world again, was the sleeping girl behind him. The fact that she was by his side, gave him all the hope he needed. It was hard to describe exactly what he was thinking of the girl these days, as recently he felt new emotions arise from something he couldn't pinpoint. Things like protectiveness, jealousy, and a little lust, had all spanned from something the girl did to him. He didn't dislike the emotions though. It made him all the more excited to see her, and sad when they had to go separate ways.

Kirito decided he would sort out his thoughts on the girl later, as he had more pressing matters at the moment. He walked over to the tent and peeked his head in. He didn't want to wake the girl up, but he also knew they should get a head start. Once inside, he took full view of the girl before him. She looked angelic laying peacefully there. Although Kirito did notice her eyes seemed a little puffed up and red. Why, he had no clue.

He sighed in dismay as he went to shake her awake. "I'm sorry..." Argo mumbled in her sleep. This caused Kirito to freeze, wondering what exactly she was dreaming about. Her face scrunched up as she continued to talk almost pleadingly. "I-I didn't know...!" Kirito's eyes widened in surprise, as a tear fell down her cheek. He decided he had to wake her up, he couldn't watch while some nightmare haunted her. He started gently shaking the girl while he called out to her. "Tomo! Wake up Tomo! Her eyes suddenly fluttered open in response. He didn't mean to scare her, but she moved back in fear from the sudden awakening. Once she remembered her surroundings, despite Kirito being right in front of her, she started to cry. She tried to wipe away the tears as quickly as possible, but it was to no avail as they kept coming.

Kirito immediately, on instinct went to comfort the girl. He wrapped his arms around her, which she gladly accepted. She clung to him as if he was her lifeline, and buried her face as deep as she could into his chest. Kirito felt his heart shatter, he hadn't expected to see this side of Argo. Yet considering the situation they were placed into; it wasn't all to surprising. He started stroking the back of her head, trying his best to calm her down. She settled down about a minute later. He felt her take a few unsteady breaths as she was finding it hard to produce anymore tears.

She slowly moved her head up to look at him. "Thank you," was all she said. He nodded, as if saying "of course." He stood up and took her hand, lifting her with no effort. She wiped away the remaining dampness from her eyes, and fixed her hood back on. "Sorry about your shirt..." she said, causing Kirito to finally notice as well. He had been too concerned about her to care if his shirt got wet.

"It's fine, but are you okay now Argo?" he asked with worry prominent on his face. "Yea, I'm better." "You have a bad nightmare?" Kirito continued. She simply nodded gently. "Want to talk about it?" he asked hesitantly. "Not really" she lied. Argo wanted to spill everything right there in front of him, but she was scared. Scared of what he might think of her after.

Kirito's eyes hardened, not content with zero answers, but he wasn't going to press her about it anymore. "Alright, just meet me outside when you're ready, were headed to the northwest fields. We need to level up as fast as possible, there are probably players who are multiple levels ahead already."

"Alright, but later tonight I'm going to start on my guidebook. Also, while were exploring floor one and we find anything that is different than the beta, don't tell anyone because I can make some nice cor off whatever new info there is," she said with a slight smirk forming across her mouth.

Kirito smirked back, "Of course To-chan, or should I say, Rat-chan." Argo chuckled at the name. "Alright, I'll meet you outside in just a sec." Kirito nodded, "Okay, but don't take too long ya slow poke." he teased while he headed outside.

Once Argo was all set to go, they packed up all their stuff back into their inventories and headed out. It was a silent walk on the way to the fields, but it was a comfortable silence. They just enjoyed the others presence as they walked.

Kirito was also deep in thought at the moment. _I know for sure; something is going on with Argo. She has been acting unlike herself. It's obvious she isn't telling me about something. I don't know if I should confront her about it or not. It could be something she just doesn't want me to know about. _Kirito was conflicted on what to do. After thinking it over for a bit, he decided he would ask her after today what was going on.

When it came to his goal of being a front liner, he was already behind. That's why he was going to solely focus on leveling up and unlocking new skill slots. His first skill slot, the one every player started with, was the only one he had at the moment. He had temporarily used it for the crafting skill, but now that they didn't need it anymore, he opted for a combat focused ability. The skill he chose was the 'One-Handed Sword' skill. This would allow him to improve things such as sword skill cooldown time, critical strike chance, and obtain the quick-change ability.

As for Argo, she would choose the 'Blade Throwing' skill once level two as hiding preoccupied her first slot. She usually used claws as her main weapon, but she wanted something long range this time around.

They finally arrived to the fields after about a twenty-minute walk. It was still early out, the time being six o'clock. They only saw a one or two small groups of people in the distance. "Let's start grinding somewhere around here. We can alternate attacks and take turns with final blows. With so little people there should be plenty exp for the both of us to catch up. My goal for now is to at least reach level 3 or 4 by tonight."

Argo looked at him with her cheeks puffed out in a big smile. Kirito looked at her strangely, "what's so funny?" She proceeded to laugh and ask him, "Where exactly would you like to grind kii-bou?" He looked at her monotonely, clearly not amused. He sighed and started walking to the nearest boar, ignoring Argos question. "Fine, Fine. It wasn't a very good joke," she admitted. Argo followed Kirito where they started the grind for exp.

"Dammit!" Kirito said, frustrated at the lack of progress being made. He and Argo had each hit level two, but they were only about halfway to level three with the sun starting to go down. "There has to be a faster way to do this." he stated. "I just need to come up with a way we can gather a lot of boars in a single location. That way, our exp gains will boost up significantly."

Argo nodded in agreement. They needed exp at a faster rate than what they were getting currently. Since they already know of the first-floor boss, they already knew how much hp he has, his minions, and the weapons he had. They were going to have to take all that info into consideration, as Kirito did plan on being in the boss battle.

Kirito estimated that front line players would be around level 10 or so in the next two weeks. That would mean he would want to be at about level 15 to continuously keep ahead of everyone else. He also wanted Argo to be of a similar level.

Argo was thinking hard of a way they could gain exp fast, with any kind of normal spawning mob. _We're going to want to have a method that works almost anywhere. Once we get past a certain floor, if the method we are using at the time is mob specific, we couldn't go back due to exp being too little. _Then she had an epiphany, why not hire NPC's to come with them to any grinding area, and use them to spawn more mobs in. That would increase the amount of exp for them exponentially.

To explain it simply, Argo already knew that the more players in a single area, the more mobs spawn. That includes any NPC that is able to be hired for work. Just like in other games, you could hire a follower that would help you out and carry your items. They were like another player but you commanded them what to do. That means if tell them not to attack, they wouldn't attack. So, if they hired NPC's, brought them out to a grinding spot, and didn't let them attack, that would mean that her and Kirito would keep all the exp for themselves while also getting more from the NPC's being around.

Argo smiled at her own brilliance. "Hey Kii-bou! Guess what!" she excitedly yelled at him. Kirito looked up; he had been trying to figure out exactly what she just solved. "What's up?" he asked curiously.

She smirked mischievously.

"I have an idea"

**A/N:**

**Alright! Second chapter done!**

**I hope you guys enjoyed this as much as I did. **

**While I was writing the tent scene I was practically squealing like a girl. I'm starting to scare myself. But if you guys enjoyed it or if you didn't -please leave a review so I know what I can do better on or what I've been doing good!**

**I didn't think 5,000 words would take me so long but dang, I'm surprised I even made the deadline I made for myself. **

**Also! Shout out to my first reviewer – (giacomoX) ! Seeing anyone respond is always nice **

**Thank you to my second reviewer as well – (Guest) lol, u know who u are.**

**Anyways, I'll see you all later!**

**Will be continued...**

**..**

**.**

**In the next chapter!**


End file.
